Alasdair White
Faculty
Alasdair White is an exceptional exponent of west coast Scottish music and is widely regarded as one of the foremost Scottish fiddler players of his generation. He was born and brought up on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides, a chain of islands of singular importance to Gaelic Scotland’s musical heritage and is perhaps best known as having been a member of Scotland’s seminal Battlefield Band for over 16 years.
Earl White
Virginia
with Mark Olitsky – banjo, Adrienne Davis – guitar, and Joseph DeJarnette – bass.
Fiddling Earl White has been a mainstay in the old-time, folk and dance community for more than 45 years. An original and founding member of the famed Green Grass Cloggers, he is one of few Black Americans preserving and playing Appalachian old time string band music, which was an intricate part of Black communities and formed the foundation of American music of today. …
Lisbeth White
Residency & Artist Projects Program Assistant
Lisbeth is a writer and ritualist born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. With a background in creative writing and expressive arts therapy, she is dedicated to creating and supporting communities that uplift artists and cultural creators. She is the author of the poetry collection American Sycamore, and co-editor of the anthology Poetry as Spellcasting: Poems, Essays, and Prompts for Manifesting Liberation and Reclaiming Power.…
Lisbeth White
February 14, 2026 Reading
Lisbeth White is an enchantivist writer based in the Pacific Northwest. She is the author of American Sycamore; the elemental memoir, A Most Natural Thing; and co-editor of Poetry as Spellcasting.
Michael Wiegers
December 13, 2025 Reading
Michael Wiegers has been editing books for Copper Canyon Press since 1993, and currently serves as the Press’s Executive Editor/Editor in Chief. He has edited two anthologies covering the history of Copper Canyon Press poetry: A House Called Tomorrow: 50 Years of Poetry and Come Shining: More Poems and Stories from Fifty Years of Copper Canyon Press.…
Phil Wiggins
Faculty
Phil Wiggins is a versatile traditional harmonica player, continuing the Piedmont blues tradition, a gentle and melodic blues style of the mid-Atlantic region. He plays the diatonic ten-hole harmonica in the country blues style, cupping both hands around the instrument and playing acoustically.
Jon Wikan
Faculty
Drums
Drummer, percussionist and composer Jon Wikan was born in Petersburg Alaska and raised in
Seattle, Washington.
Jon spent summers in Alaska engrossed in the fishing industry while working out his drum
technique on the back of a fish boat rail, using the money he made fishing to purchase his first
drum set.
Jon’s drumming life began in his teenage years with his heavy metal obsession, followed by
years of Soca band playing in Seattle and finally resolving into the jazz idiom upon discovering
the deep pocket swing of Jeff Hamilton.…
Buster Williams
Faculty
Bass
Buster Williams is a prodigious artist whose playing knows no limits. He has played, recorded and collaborated with jazz giants such as Art Blakey, Betty Carter, Carmen McRae, Chet Baker, Chick Corea, Dexter Gordon, Jimmy Heath, Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt, Herbie Hancock, Larry Coryell, Lee Konitz, McCoy Tyner, Illinois Jacquet, Nancy Wilson, Elvin Jones, Miles Davis, the Jazz Crusaders, Ron Carter, Woody Shaw, Sarah Vaughan, Benny Golson, Mary Lou Williams, Hank Jones, Lee Morgan, Jimmy Rowles, Hampton Hawes, Cedar Walton, Bobby Hutcherson, Billy Taylor, Sonny Rollins, Count Basie, Errol Garner, Kenny Barron, Charlie Rouse, Dakota Staton, Kenny Dorham, and Freddie Hubbard, to name a few.…
Jontavious Willis
Artistic Director, Traditional Blues
Blues musician and multi-instrumentalist, Jontavious Willis, from Georgia, has been named Centrum’s Artistic Director for Acoustic Blues beginning in 2020.
Reeb Willms
Faculty
Reeb Willms has been singing and playing guitar since 2001 and is widely regarded as one of the best rhythm guitar players in old time music. She hails from the windswept Central Washington farmlands of Douglas County, and was heavily influenced as a child by her musical father and uncles, who performed locally as the Willms Brothers. Her warm, tender vocals and driving rhythms are a living testament to this musical tradition, which she brought to the stage in her early 20s.